Cabela's deal in Millcreek falls apart

About Cabela's

- Founded in 1961 by Richard N. Cabela as a mail-order company.- Mailed its first catalog in 1963.- Opened its first location in Sidney, Neb., in 1970.- Opened its first signature showroom in Sidney, in 1991.- Went public in 1991, and has continued to expand its retail operations.- Today, there at least 35 Cabela's stores in the U.S. and three in Canada.

SOURCE: Cabela's

This is a March 7 photo of people waiting outside of Cabela's at its grand opening in Columbus, Ohio. FRED SQUILLANTE,Columbus Dispatch/CONTRIBUTED

Shoppers lined up all night before a new Cabela's Outpost store opened in February near Saginaw, Mich.

In Columbus, Ohio, a new Cabela's store for outdoors enthusiasts continues to draw crowds so large that traffic backs up onto nearby Interstate 71.

Officials from those two communities said the Erie area could expect much of the same buzz, if a Cabela's Outpost store opens in the Erie area.

But it now appears that local enthusiasm among those who love to shop indoors -- and hunt, fish and camp outdoors -- was premature for the region's first Cabela's.

The Millcreek Township Planning Commission had been scheduled to vote tonight on recommending a land-development plan to township supervisors for a new Cabela's Outpost store at the Millcreek Marketplace, just southeast of Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant.

But that's been pulled from the agenda because Cabela's and the property owner did not reach an agreement, township Supervisor Brian McGrath said.

"We were pretty pumped up about it, but that just came to light,'' McGrath said.

Jack Munch, director of leasing and development for Baldwin Brothers Inc., said Monday, "The parties did not come together on a deal. It does not look like a deal will happen."

Baldwin Brothers is the leasing agent for the Millcreek Marketplace, which is owned by members of the Baldwin and Cafaro families. The Cafaro Co. owns the Millcreek Mall complex just north of the Millcreek Marketplace.

Munch said Cabela's is "a great company. We're disappointed. We would have loved to bring them to town."

Munch -- who said other developments are planned for the property -- said he doesn't know whether Cabela's is considering another site in Erie County. Cabela's officials have not returned an Erie Times-News reporter's repeated phone calls.

Millcreek officials, however, aren't giving up hope.

"We'll do anything we can to make that happen," McGrath said.

That would not include tax breaks, however. Millcreek would not give tax breaks to a retailer in the busy shopping district, nor did Cabela's ask for them during a recent meeting with township officials, Supervisor Joseph Kujawa said.

A destination attraction

Cabela's is in an expansion mode, and its plans for Millcreek had called for a 42,392-square-foot retail store to sell hunting, fishing, camping and other outdoor gear.

If Cabela's comes to the Erie market, it would be another boost to the county's nearly $1 billion annual tourism economy, said John Oliver, president of VisitErie, Erie County's tourism promotion agency. And it would draw people from northeast Ohio, New York, southern Ontario and other places, he said.

Shane Farnsworth, economic-development administrator for Columbus, said that city's 80,000-square-foot store, which opened in early March, has been "packed from day one.'' He said to expect the same if Cabela's builds in the Erie area.

"It's going to be a packed house, I'm sure of it. It's going to help the whole area," he said.

"The sheer amount of consumers that it draws; it is a destination," Farnsworth said.

Despite the proposed Millcreek location being one of the chain's smaller stores, Farnsworth said, "It will still be a major draw. The products they have and the quality of their products, that's what draws the sportsmen and sportswomen to it."

Steve King, director for the Downtown Development Authority in Kochville Township, a suburb of Saginaw, said Cabela's built a 44,000-square-foot Outpost store in what had been a closed Circuit City outlet.

"They redeveloped a vacant storefront. So it was a win-win for us," he said.

The opening of Cabela's on Valentine's Day drew at least a few thousand people who waited in the parking lot, he said. "They lined up all night to get into the store," he said.

Unlike some of the bigger stores, the Cabela's in Kochville doesn't have fish tanks or floor displays showing the work of taxidermists, he said. Some stuffed animals are mounted on the walls, and about 20 percent of Cabela's retail products are available on the floor at any one time, he said.

But customers can order online or in the store through catalogs, King said. And the more limited offerings haven't stopped people from visiting, he said.

"It's been busy every day since it opened," King said.

"They've been experimenting with the Outpost store format, expanding their brand presence into additional markets as part of a lower-risk model," he said.

Cabela's operates at least 35 stores in the United States and three in Canada, with more plans in the works.

More choices with Cabela's

The addition of Cabela's, should the Sidney, Neb.-based company decide to build here, would give outdoors enthusiasts even more options than they have now.

Gander Mountain and Dick's Sporting Goods are in the Millcreek Pavilion, part of the mall complex. The Erie Sport Store and Sportsmans Liquidation are just a short drive south on Peach Street.

And there are other stores in the area, including Edinboro Outdoors at 211 Mill St., Edinboro.

"When I look at a player like Cabela's, it's going to drive more traffic into the retail market, which is going to generate more sales for my company," said Todd Locker, chief executive of the 19-store Sportsmans Liquidation, based in Chambersburg.

Locker said his stores are different from Cabela's, "which is a retailer that caters to every outdoor need. We're (a discount) retailer.''

Rich Weber, president of the Erie Sport Store, said he takes every potential competitor seriously, but said his store belongs to the nation's largest sporting goods buying group, allowing it to buy goods at low prices and pass the savings along to customers.

The Erie Sport Store is diversified because it sells athletic gear and team sports, lettering and trophy services, Weber said.

Jess Myers, a spokesman for St. Paul, Minn.-based Gander Mountain, said the chain competes "head to head with other outdoor stores in several markets. We always welcome healthy competition. When folks compare our level of service, prices and selection, they continue to shop our stores."

Jim Buschak, co-owner of Edinboro Outdoors, said there's always some concern with competition, but his store provides a niche with personal service and special orders.

But he wonders whether the Erie area is big enough to support Dick's, Gander Mountain, the Erie Sport Store, Cabela's and others. "You can only take so much of the pie," he said.

For now, at least, it looks as though Cabela's is still deciding whether to take a bite of that pie.

JOHN GUERRIERO can be reached at 870-1690 or by e-mail. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ETNguerriero.